Overview
Tuna casserole is a casserole primarily made with pasta or rice and canned tuna, with peas sometimes added. The dish is often topped with potato chips, corn flakes, bread crumbs or canned fried onions. Tuna casserole is a common dish in some parts of the United States, often prepared using only nonperishable pantry ingredients.
History
Casseroles became popular in American households in the 1950s mainly because the ingredients were cheap and easy to find at the supermarket. Tuna casserole could also be frozen or refrigerated and then reheated to be eaten the next day. Tuna casserole is popular to take to potlucks, and may be taken to the home of someone who is sick or going through bereavement as a gesture of kindness.
While there are countless variations of tuna casserole, historically it is made with egg noodles, chopped onion, shredded cheddar cheese, frozen green peas, drained canned tuna, condensed cream of mushroom or cream of celery soup, and crushed potato chips. The cooked noodles, onion, cheese, peas, tuna, and soup are mixed in a baking dish, with the crumb topping and more cheese sprinkled on top, and then baked.
In 2010, Bon Appétit featured a from-scratch tuna casserole recipe, developed by Molly Stevens and featuring leeks, fresh dill, and Gruyère cheese. Chrissy Teigen featured a tuna casserole recipe in her cookbook, Cravings, with her version including typical nonperishable ingredients such as canned tuna, cream of mushroom soup, egg noodles, cheese, and a potato chip topping, with her version also featuring jalapeño peppers.
Tuna Mornay
Tuna casserole is commonly known as tuna mornay in Australia. The dish is prepared with a mornay sauce (béchamel with cheese added, resulting in a cheese sauce). Peas or corn are often included.
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).